Sync Call for Wednesday April 29 at Noon EST
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Minutes
1. News and Announcements:
- Volunteer Opportunities
- We’re looking for a volunteer who knows how to write grants, and
- Somebody to help with put together a WWICC Newsletter. The content will be provided, for the most part; We need someone to edit and format it
- Email meredith.carr@worldwar1centennial.org.
- Pershing Rifles Sale
- The Pershing Rifles Foundation is selling two prints of General Pershing to raise money for the Pershing Rifles. One is of Pershing as ‘General of the Armies’ in 1921 and the other is of Lt. Pershing and his cadet leadership at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln in 1893. A percentage of these sales will go to towards supporting the Commission. Check them out at https://theprgroup.org/foundation/store/
- Amazon Smile Mother’s Day
- Mother’s Day is fast approaching. Please shop on SMILE.AMAZON.COM! At no cost to you, Amazon will donate ½ percent of your purchase to a charity of your choice. Enter the "United States Foundation for the Commemoration of the World Wars" as your charitable organization.
- NYC Lusitania Wreath Laying, May 7
- On Thursday, May 7th, 2015 at 10am, the U.S. World War One Centennial Commission will host a wreath-laying ceremony at City Pier A, in Manhattan’s Battery Park, New York City, to honor the 100th anniversary of the tragic sinking of the RMS Lusitania
- Washington DC Lusitania Panel, May 7
- On May 7th, 2015, the U.S. World War One Centennial Commission will host a panel discussion at the NATIONAL PRESS CLUB in Washington, DC, at 6:30pm to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the tragic sinking of the RMS Lusitania.
- PLEASE REGISTER: on the NPC site: http://www.press.org/events/lusitania-centennial-event
- Herbert the Humanitarian
- There’s currently an ongoing exhibit at the Hoover Library-Museum in West Branch, IA called “The Making of the Great Humanitarian: Herbert Hoover and World War I. The exhibit highlights the humanitarian side of Hoover and also includes a mock-up trench and a replica of the SS Hannah. If you’re in the area, check it out! More information at http://www.hooverassociation.org/newsevents/hoovercookie.php
- Naval Heritage Center’s “Authors on Deck” Series: 21st Century Sims
- On May 27 at noon, as part of its “Authors on Deck” Series, the Naval Heritage Center in Washington DC will host Lt. Commander Benjamin Armstrong as he discusses his newest book, 21st Century Sims. This book examines the turn-of-the-20th century Admiral William Sims’ often-overlooked role at the forefront of naval affairs. More information at http://navymemorial.org/
2. Shout Outs:
Allison Finkelstein, for all her help with the Governor’s Letters
Grace Peterson, David Dorsey, Chris Carpino, Matt, Schauer, Will Baroz, Jason Moskel, and Edward Rosenberg: our Spring semester interns are wrapping up their time here soon. Thank you for all your hard work and dedication!
3. How you can help the WWICC this week:
- A CALL TO ARMS: We need volunteers!
- Belgian Embassy Open House—Saturday May 09
- There will be a small WWI exhibit. We are looking for volunteers to help us staff this event. It will go from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. Ideally volunteers would work in two to three hour shifts passing out information about the commission and our activities.
- Sometime in the days leading up to the Memorial Day parade, we’ll need a street-savvy navigator to guide Dave Lockard and his Packard truck from Rt. 15 to Fort McNair.
- Memorial Weekend at the US Navy Memorial—Saturday May 23 and Monday May 25. We need people to man a table during several wreath laying ceremonies at the memorial.
- Please email Rebekah Wilson.
- Belgian Embassy Open House—Saturday May 09
- More Volunteers!
- We’re looking for a volunteer who knows how to write grants, and
- Somebody to help with put together a WWICC Newsletter. The content will be provided, for the most part; We need someone to edit and format it.
- Email please Meredith Carr.
- If you are interested in helping with state and regional organization, please let Andrew McGreal know and he will send you
- information on how to get involved.
- SHOP AT SMILE.AMAZON.COM! Enter the "United States Foundation for the Commemoration of the World Wars" as your charitable organization.
4. The Great War Channel
Would you like to see some great videos on YouTube about WWI? Check out The Great War Channel. Posting twice a week, ‘The Great War’ shows you the history of the First World War in the four years from 1914 to 1918. The host, Indy, takes you back week by week and shows you what was going on in the past. Please subscribe to see these great posts. Their last two videos are:
- "How did Propaganda Change After the First Months of World War 1? : OUT OF THE TRENCHES"
April 27, 2015. Indy takes place in the chair of wisdom again to answer your questions. This week we deal with the outer ends of the Western Front, changes in propaganda and the logistics in the Carpathians. - “Gas On The Western Front - Baptism of Fire for Canada: THE GREAT WAR Week 39”
April 23, 2015. After experiments on the Eastern Front, the German Army is using poison gas for the first time on the Western Front. At the beginning of the 2nd Battle of Ypres, the wind blows in a favourable direction; the wide spread use of chlorine gas has a devastating effect on the French troops. Even the Germans are surprised by it. The incredible sacrifice of the Canadian troops make it possible to defend Hill 60 in the end.
5. The Great War Weekly: This Week 100 Years Ago
Presented by Mr. Mike Hanlon - http://www.worldwar1.com
This week: The Land Campaign at Gallipoli
This past weekend saw the remembrance of the initial landings of the Gallipoli campaign. Some things to remember about the battle. There were 7 Landing Sites, 6 on the Gallipoli Peninsula, 1 on the Asian side, by a French Force in essence a division. The French troops would be quickly moved over to the peninsula so we will focus on that area. Five of the landing sites were at the tip of the peninsula, known as Cape Helles. They appear close on a map, but are actually spread over a frontage of 10 miles. The 6th, Known as Anzac, was 15 miles to the north.
The opposing forces on Day One included 3 smaller Turkish divisions, Allied forces on Cape Helles with one reinforced Division, the 29th, and the 3rd Brigade representing the Anzacs.
The Plan on day one was that both groups were to seize the high ground above the beaches. Immediately after they were to march to combine forces, hook up then take the forts on the strait.
Neither the Cape Helles or Anzac groups succeeded in taking their first day objectives – for the entire 8-month campaign. The Cape Helles effort did not get unified until the Turkish Commander had organized what would prove an unbreakable defensive line. Mustafa Kemal would personally direct the first day's battle above Anzac and they would never yield the high ground except for one place for a few hours in August.
The entire campaign was bogged down from April to August. A second, better organized, but poorly conceived and commanded campaign was defeated again by Mustafa Kemal's leadership.The only success of the Gallipoli campaign was the withdrawal of forces under the enemy guns in December and January.
Why did it fail?
Historian Tim Travers says succinctly: "The reason the Allied campaign did not succeed at Gallipoli, [was] that most senior officers lacked experience of modern industrial war and thought that the attack was simpler than it actually was in 1915."
Resources:
- Defeat at Gallipoli by Nigel Steel and Peter Hart
- 100 Years Ago: Landings on the Gallipoli Peninsula
Next Week: The Sinking of the Lusitania with Commissioner Dr. Libby O’Connell
Questions or Comments? Please contact Mike Hanlon through his website: http://www.worldwar1.com.
Upcoming Events for the next two weeks
If you have an agenda item or calendar event to include, please email Andrew McGreal before next Wednesday at andrew.mcgreal@worldwar1centennial.org.
MAY
Tuesday, May 5, 2015, 6:00 PM
A Higher Form of Killing
WWI Museum at Liberty Memorial, Kansas City, MO
Three pivotal events occurred in the spring/early summer of 1915 during the first year of World War I. In late April, German troops released poison gas over French and Canadian troops in the trenches at Ypres in the world's first poison gas attack; in early May 1915, a German submarine torpedoed the Cunard liner Lusitania killing 1,200 civilians; on May 31, a Zeppelin bombed London in the first ever “blitz.” Join Diana Preston, BBC broadcaster, Oxford educated historian and author of Higher Form of Killing, as she explores these incidents – all illegal under international law – and how they changed the nature of warfare forever in J.C. Nichols Auditorium. Presented in partnership with the English-Speaking Union, Kansas City Branch. Cash bar and small plates available between 5-6 p.m. Free to the public with RSVP. https://theworldwar.org/visit/upcoming-events
Thursday, MAY 7, 2015, 2:30 PM
Lusitania Through Objects
WWI Museum at Liberty Memorial, Kansas City, MO
Remember the Lusitania? Visit the National World War I Museum on the 100th anniversary of the sinking of this renowned ship and explore the Main Gallery to learn whether it did indeed cause the United States to join the war. Join Museum Senior Curator Doran Cart on the Paul Sunderland Glass Bridge as we examine two objects currently on exhibition about the Lusitania. Free to the public. https://theworldwar.org/visit/upcoming-events
Thursday, May 7, 10am EDT, Pier A Battery Park,
NYC Lusitania Wreath Laying
On Thursday, May 7th, 2015 at 10am, the U.S. World War One Centennial Commission will host a wreath-laying ceremony at City Pier A, in Manhattan’s Battery Park, New York City, to honor the 100th anniversary of the tragic sinking of the RMS Lusitania. The location is symbolic, as the pier’s clock tower houses the first memorial dedicated to World War One in the United States. Further, the location overlooks the Statue of Liberty, and is not far from Pier 54, where the RMS Lusitania departed on her final voyage. This event is free and open to the public. Honored guests and descendants of Lusitania passengers will attend, including Dr. Libby O’Connell, Commission member and the Chief Historian of the History Channel.
http://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/events/lusitania-sinking-centennial-event-new-york-city.html
Thursday May 07, 6:30pm, National Press Club, Washington DC
Lusitania Panel Discussion Program
On May 7th, 2015, the U.S. World War One Centennial Commission will host a panel discussion at the NATIONAL PRESS CLUB in Washington, DC, at 6:30pm to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the tragic sinking of the RMS Lusitania. This program is free and open to the public and will feature panelists John Maxwell Hamilton, Prof. Richard Striner, and RADM Samuel Cox (USN, ret.). Discussion will focus on the wartime role of Lusitania, the worldwide reaction to her tragedy, and the impact of Lusitania’s sinking on public opinion in the United States. http://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/events/lusitania-sinking-centennial-event-washington-dc.html
Saturday, May 09, all day at Veterans Memorial Hall, Lamar, MO
Captain Harry S. Truman World War 1 Symposium
The Truman Day celebration in Lamar Missouri will feature a WW1 Symposium at Veterans Memorial Hall (1100 Broadway). The all-day family friendly program starting at 9:00AM will be of interest to all age groups. Displays of uniforms, photos, art work, and news articles of the WW1 era in America will be available for public viewing. Ancestors of WW1 veterans are encouraged to bring in photos, letters and other family keepsakes for a question and answer sharing time with historians that will provide insights on their veteran’s experiences, and answer questions about military units and battle campaigns during their time of military service. For further details on the event contact Kavan Stull @ 417-673-1051.
Symposium Event Schedule
- 9:00 Opening ceremony with Doughboys on parade
- 9:15 Announcements of WW 1 Symposium Events
- Displays open to public viewing
- 9:30 Discussion Q & A - Family Artifacts, Photos, Veteran Stories / Sharing time
- 10:00 Historian Shannon Kelly – WW1 Living History American Soldier Portrayal
- 10:45 Historian Michal Price – The Great War in Springfield
- 11:30 Historian Gary Larson – “Missouri Over There” – Missouri State Library Program
- Family Artifacts, Photo and Document Digitization
- 12:00 Hawthorne Band on Stage Performance – Popular songs and music from the WW1 era
- 1:00 Historian Shannon Kelly – WW1 Living History American Soldier Portrayal
- 2:00 Historian Shannon Kelly – Belgium Battle Field Visit & 1914 Christmas Truce
- 3:00 Missouri Park / Historic Site Specialist Beth Bazal – Captain Harry S. Truman
- 4:00 Historian Shannon Kelly – WW1 Living History American Soldier Portrayal
- 5:00 Closing Ceremony
SATURDAY, May 9 - SUNDAY, May 10 at the National WWI Museum, Kansas City, MO “WW1USA Amateur Radio Station”
The National World War I Museum is teaming with area amateur radio operators to host special event station WW1USA from the grounds of the Museum for 31 consecutive hours from Saturday, May 9 at 10 a.m. through Sunday, May 10 at 5 p.m. During this time, station operators will contact hundreds of other amateur radio operators across the world. Individuals are welcome to serve as a guest operator of WW1USA at any time during regular Museum hours with all guests receiving a special amateur radio operator certificate. Free to the public.
https://theworldwar.org/visit/upcoming-events
Tuesday, May 12, at 10:00 AM
At the Clinton War Memorial, 11th Avenue and 52nd Street, New York, NY
The Annual In Flanders Fields Memorial
Hosted by the Government of Flanders, Belgium to mark the 100th anniversary of Lt. Col. John McCrae’s poem “In Flanders Fields” and to remember all those who made the ultimate sacrifice. It will feature an Honor Guard from Fort Hamilton. A reception will follow at the Press Lounge located at Ink48, 653 11th Avenue. Please confirm your attendance before May 1 by RSVPing to 2014-18@flandershouse.org.
Ongoing EVENTS/EXHIBITS: (in order of closing soonest)
Ends May 1, 2015
World War I Centennial Exhibit
Chan Shun Library at Southwestern Adventist University
SWAU's department of social sciences and history are partnering up with the Chan Shun Centennial library to present an exhibit commemorating the 100th anniversary of World War I. Attendees will have the chance to view artifacts and experience a trench replica. This is an interdisciplinary project that will interest both academic scholars and the general public.https://calendar.swau.edu/EventList.aspx?view=EventDetails&eventidn=1765&information_id=4374&type=&rss=rss
Ends May 6, 2015
Exhibit: “World War I with America’s March King”
Sousa Archives and Center for American Music, U of Illinois
This exhibition explores Sousa’s musical contributions to America’s war effort and how this music reflected his acknowledgment of the sacrifices that were made by all Americans who fought in this military conflict.
http://illinois.edu/calendar/detail/7?eventId=32123862&calMin=201502&cal=20150217&skinId=1
Ends June 14, 2015
Over There! Posters from World War I”
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Timed to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of WWI, this exhibition features fifty wartime posters from the United States and Europe—including select examples from Britain, France, Germany, and Russia. Many of the works were used to encourage enlistment in the US Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Service, while others appeal to the American citizenry to buy war bonds, conserve food, support the Red Cross and other relief agencies, and maintain a strong work ethic on the home front. This exhibition is the first time since 1938 that many of these works will be on view, and marks the MFA’s first display of the newly acquired poster I Want You for U. S. Army (1917) by James Montgomery Flagg.http://www.mfa.org/exhibitions/over-there
Through June 2015
WWI Exhibit at the Burdett Mansion
Woburn Historical Society, Woburn, MA
The exhibit honors the 100th anniversary of the beginning of WWI in 1914. The US joined the war in 1917 when over 1,400 men and women from Woburn served as part of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) and on the homefront. On display are US, German, French, Italian and Canadian artifacts. http://www.woburnhistoricalsociety.com/
Ends July 19, 2015
“World War I and the Rise of Modernism”
The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Mo.
In commemoration of the World War I Centennial, this exhibition explores the impact of the Great War on the art and artists of that tumultuous era.
Part one examines the art of the German Expressionists, French Cubists, Italian Futurists, British Vorticists and American artists as they responded to pre-war industrialism and urban energy. Part two explores the course of modernism during the devastating war years. Part three focuses on the two main artistic directions that emerged after the war. While French Surrealism probed the irrationality that had led to war, artists at the German Bauhaus embraced rational principles of efficiency and economy, as they sought to build anew.http://www.nelson-atkins.org/art/exhibitions/WWI.cfm
Ends July 22
Margaret Fish Rahill Great Hall at the CHARLES ALLIS ART MUSEUM, Milwaukee, WI
Art For The Cause: French Posters from the First World War
As in the United States, France solicited the support of its citizenry, both moral and financial, through large-format posters displayed in the windows of publicly- and privately-owned venues. Countries on both sides of the Atlantic commissioned leading artists and illustrators to provide the poster designs and drawings. Despite their common intentions, the French posters took on a more tragic character than their American counterparts, reflecting the devastation of the landscape and on the lives of soldiers and their families. The exhibition is an opportunity for CAVT Museums, until recently a body under the War Memorial Corporation umbrella, to reflect on the turbulence of warfare and its portrayal in original works by the likes of Francisque Poulbot and Steinlen.
Gathered by Harriet Earling Fitch during the war years and after, the collection is a physical embodiment of an American philanthropist’s longstanding relationship with a foreign country. Long before the entrance of the United States into the conflict, Harriet Fitch (later Thwaits Dake) organized and directed the Milwaukee chapter of the Fatherless Children of France and was instrumental in the founding of the Foster Mothers of America. Both organizations and Harriet Earling Fitch’s philanthropic work focused on the care and support of the millions of children left fatherless by one of the deadliest conflicts in world history. For her efforts, she was awarded the Legion of Honor from the French government; her medal will be on display in the exhibition, along with archival news clippings that outline her achievements in her charitable and philanthropic work.
About 15 posters, generously lent by the family of Thomas Van Alyea Jr., will go on display in the museum’s great hall in this small exhibition held 100 years following WWI.
http://expressmilwaukee.com/article-permalink-25290.html
Ends Summer 2015
“The Faces From the Great War”
The George C Marshall Museum, Lexington, VA
Artist Edwin Dooley’s collection of pencil-on-paper portraits of well-known WWI soldiers
http://marshallfoundation.org/newsroom/news/dooley-present-faces-great-war/
Ends August 3, 2015
Exhibit: “Professor Harding and the Illinois Bands During WWI”
Sousa Archives and Center for American Music, U of Illinois
This exhibit investigates the challenges that A. Austin Harding, director of U of Illinois’ band, faced as many of his band’s members enlisted in the army and navy in 1917 after America entered the war, and highlights the role that Harding and his bands played to support that nation’s war effort.
http://illinois.edu/calendar/detail/7?eventId=32123866&calMin=201502&cal=20150217&skinId=1
Through Aug. 16
“Over Here: WWI and the Fight for the American Mind”
New York Public Libraries, New York, NY
World War I enveloped the globe from July 28, 1914, to November 11, 1918, and backlit an intense home-front struggle as Americans debated their individual and collective relationship to the conflict. Should the United States be involved in the war? If so, then to what extent and in what capacity?
The vigorous—and, at times, vicious—public debate over these questions was facilitated by an unprecedented array of media and performance outlets, including such recent inventions as recorded sound and motion pictures. Throughout the period, government at all levels, in addition to private organizations and individual citizens, used these communication tools in an increasingly sophisticated manner, all in an effort to win the hearts and minds of the nation. Truly, never before in the country’s history had Americans been so widely, and energetically, courted. And never in its history had the concept of Americanism—of what it means to be an American—been so hotly contested.
Drawing from collections across The New York Public Library, Over Here: WWI and the Fight for the American Mind explores the manner in which public relations, propaganda, and mass media in its many forms were used to shape and control public opinion about the war while also noting social and political issues that continue to resonate, such as freedom of speech and the press, xenophobia, and domestic espionage.
http://www.nypl.org/events/exhibitions/overhere
Ends August 31, 2015
“Fancy Flying: Aviation at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition”
San Francisco Airport, Departures Level 3.
Free admission. More info at: http://www.flysfo.com/museum/exhibitions/fancy-flying
Opening June 1, 2015
“The Lost Generation: Orleans County's Contribution to World War One”
The Cobblestone Society & Museum, Albion, NY
http://cobblestonemuseum.org/content/museum-exhibits
Opening June 1, 2015
“ARE YOU 100% AMERICAN?”
The Cobblestone Society & Museum, Albion, NY
An Exhibition Featuring World War One Propaganda Posters and Newspaper Headlines
http://cobblestonemuseum.org/content/museum-exhibits
May 9–September 20, 2015“Mine More Coal: War Effort and Americanism in World War I Posters”
University of Michigan Museum in Ann Arbor, MI
During World War I, the American Government used a powerful poster campaign to rally all troops and farmers, housewives and shipbuilders, “old-stock Americans” and immigrants to the cause. Propaganda, commodity, and art came together in WWI posters. This exhibition presents rarely displayed WWI posters from UMMA’s collection.
The focus of the exhibition is posters directed at coal miners. These works explore the larger themes of supporting the war effort and Americanism. Coal mining communities were microcosms for the social and economic pressures when the United States entered the Great War in 1917. Coal was a central resource for the war, yet the immigrant workforce was considered unreliable because of increasingly frequent workers’ strikes. Posters also addressed anxieties about the definition of American culture and its readiness for war. http://www.umma.umich.edu/view/exhibitions/2015-mine-more-coal.php
Ends September 25, 2015
Exhibit: Many Voices: “The Great War in America's Songs”
Sousa Archives and Center for American Music, U of Illinois
This special exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History depicts the diverse portrayals of soldiers’ lives, recruitment of African-American soldiers, women’s support for the war effort, and the country’s financial and personal sacrifice through the melodies, lyrics and graphic illustrations of sheet music that were produced between 1917 and 1919.
http://illinois.edu/calendar/detail/7?eventId=32123867&calMin=201502&cal=20150217&skinId=1
Ends October 2015
“The Making of the Great Humanitarian: Herbert Hoover and World War I”
Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum, West Branch, IA
This special exhibition includes exhibits on: World War I Trench; Stranded Overseas: Americans at the Savoy Hotel; SS Hannah Ship Replica Leads the Way; and a Belgian Village
http://www.hooverassociation.org/newsevents/hoovercookie.php
Ends December 6, 2015
“City Rising: San Francisco and the 1915 World's Fair”
Admission $5. Info at: http://www.californiahistoricalsociety.org/exhibitions/current_exhibitions/
Archival video footage at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQm6ttaHtcc
Through January 24, 2016
The Great War that Changed the World, 1914-1918
Georgia Southern Museum, Georgia Southern University
Commemorate the 100th anniversary of an event that changed our world forever. During the “Great War,” as it was called, 65 million men and women served in militaries from 36 current nations spanning 6 continents, nine million of which died. The First World War saw the introduction of new technology, the fall of empires, the rise of new states, the loss of a generation, and changes in society as a whole.
This exhibit is a collaboration of faculty curators from across the University and graduate student curator and project coordinator Sheila Boone. The exhibit design and much of the fabrication was completed by Professional Practices students in the Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art. This exhibit is the first of two to commemorate the Centennial.
http://academics.georgiasouthern.edu/museum/exhibits/current/
Through April 2016
Exhibit: “The Year of Navy Reserve Centennial”
Naval Heritage Center, Washington DC
http://navymemorial.org/yonr
IU Art Museum
Dada and Constructivism: World War I and Radical Modernism
This exhibition showcases the art world’s transformation in the wake of World War I. Many Russian artists sought orderly, rational responses to the chaos of the war. Their work came to be known as Constructivism and was characterized by clean lines, geometric structure, and an absence of violent imagery. Many artists on the Continent, particularly in Germany, rejected traditional aesthetic values and espoused antiwar philosophies. These artists formed the Dada movement and experimented with new materials and techniques, often relying on shocking imagery to convey their political messages. This exhibit is free and open to the public during regular museum hours.
http://rememberingworldwari.indiana.edu/calendar/index.html#
November 2016 – April 2017
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
“World War I and American Art”
World War I and American Art seeks to revisit a critical moment in American history through the eyes of artists in order to show how they responded to what was an unprecedented global experience. Artists had a leading role in chronicling the impact of the war, crafting images that affected public opinion, supporting the U.S. government’s mobilization efforts, and helping to shape the way soldiers were remembered in its wake. Some artists showed the efforts of the Red Cross and other relief workers, or the effect that the war had on women and families on the home front. Others witnessed the devastation brought by the war on cities and on bodies, producing work haunted by the experience. Once the war finally ended, artists produced major paintings that commemorated Armistice celebrations or memorialized its human toll. http://www.pafa.org/wwi/
